Outdoor Wear
Canucks Nation knows full well that their team has had more costume changes over the years than Justin Timberlake as host of Saturday Night Live, but could there be one final changing of the guard?
We’re talking something permanent; something that will last 100 years like the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs world-wide recognized brands. It may not be a popular idea, considering the alterations that seem to occur every couple seasons, but let’s for argument’s sake say there will be one more.
Next season’s still unconfirmed Heritage Classic at BC Place could be the venue for the Vancouver Canucks’ organization to test something new, or old, out.
Am I suggesting the retirement of the beloved Orca? Perhaps that is the easiest option regardless of its popularity, which is split down the middle. The club added the killer whale to its uniforms back in 1997, two years after Orca Bay Sports and Entertainment was founded. Of course Orca Bay no longer exists and the organization has been trending away from the logo anyway.
With huge pushes in recent years of the ‘Johnny Canuck’ and ‘Stick-In-Rink’ brands, our orca may go the way of the dodo bird sooner than later.
Let’s get one thing straight: with the retirement of the Orca comes the dawning of the stylized, ‘Stick-In-Rink,’ era. It would become our permanent first jersey and would stay that way until the end of time.
Will Johnny Canuck uniforms be coming out soon?
So when you read the following possibilities, imagine the Canucks’ current 3rd as their potential, future, primary logo/jersey.
Hello Johnny
A popular idea is making the ‘running Johnny Canuck’ a main part of the Canucks’ set of logos, but this will not be the jersey the Canucks wear on home ice at BC Place. This game is all about heritage and so it will be something we’ve already seen before.
That’s not to say this couldn’t be an option if a permanent switch were to come, but even then you’d have to think this would be the new permanent 3rd jersey or secondary logo as mentioned.
The colours would be blue and green–of course–with identical trim. The issue here is we don’t actually know how these jerseys look. The club could line a few players up at center ice and they may look really freakin’ unappealing to our eyes, but by then it’ll be too late.
I can’t say I agree with all the ‘Vancouver’ on the chest haters but that still hasn’t grown on everyone since they sort of just threw those at us out of nowhere.
Maybe the Vancouver Sun could hold a 3rd jersey design contest similar to what they did in 1987 prior to the Canucks home uni switch from puke yellow to piss-in-the-snow white.
Money, Money, Money
A lot of speculation after the Canucks wore throwback Vancouver Millionaires jerseys back on March 16 revolved around whether or not the club could bring them out of the closet periodically in the future. While I have to agree they are very sexy jerseys and a one-off would be disappointing, the Nucks of present day don’t deserve to wear those jerseys.
They may represent winning, but not for this franchise. One argument would be to have one ‘Millionaires Night’ each season to make it a special occasion.
If, however, you bring them out four or five times each year, that’s just as bad as the fact the NHL is planning six outdoor games. It would be watered down and no longer unique unless management is willing to make it the official third jersey. But again, not our franchise, not an option I support.
Become Pastafarians
There is no question, Canucks fans have been clamoring for the old, ‘flying plate of spaghetti,’ to make its triumphant return. Since the NHL introduced its Vintage Hockey line, there’s really only one significant set of colours the Canucks are yet to resort back to. If you’re wondering, I don’t mean the burgundy, purple, blue and silver.
My best guess and highest hope is that when the Vancouver Canucks take to the ice at hopefully an open-roofed BC Place on March 2nd, 2014, they will be donning the good ol’ ‘flying skate’ with the black, yellow and red majestically stitched into Reebok Edge form.
No other set of colours has given the Canucks more success. Granted, the 1982 final appearance was with the ‘Flying V’, and Luongo forbid they wear those.
Could these be part of the new uniform lineup? (canucks.nhl.com)
Think about this: every Heritage Classic is preceded by an Alumni Game and most of our highly worshiped Canucks legends wore the ‘flying skate.”
Here’s a sampling of some players we could see back in those colours Pavel Bure, Trevor Linden, Kirk McLean, Gino Odjick, the Courtnall brothers, Greg Adams, Cliff Ronning, Dave Babych, Stan Smyl and oh yeah, Markus Naslund. What an event that will be!
So once the Heritage Classic and 2013-14 NHL season are all wrapped up, I propose we see the ‘Flying Skate’ become the official, and I repeat, permanent Canucks 3rd jersey.
While it’s not traditional for a team’s 3rd to have an entirely different colour scheme from their regular home and away, this is Vancouver and we’re special in so many ways, so why the hell not?
Just in case you didn’t catch this in the last paragraph: yes the colours stay the same with a black/red/yellow stick-in-rink or Johnny Canuck shoulder patch.
Canucks fans may not collectively feel up to another change of jersey or logo but it’s probably something we know is coming with the unceasing push of the Johnny Canuck brand we all don’t seem to mind.
So let’s make it permanent and something we can be proud of forever. Let’s quit whining about the fact Gary Bettman is a greedy little Count and embrace the fact this is happening.
Let’s make the most of it Michael D. Gillis. Whaddya say?
If it’s any consolation, the Vancouver Whitecaps having altered their primary jersey this season will have had as many changes as the Canucks do after 42 seasons by their 20thth in the MLS.
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